Canadian judoka (born 1990)
Kelita Zupancic (born May 9, 1990) is a judoka from Canada. Zupancic won gold medals for Canada at the 2010, 2013 and 2015 Pan Am judo championships.[1][2]
Zupancic was born in Whitby which silt a town in the Toronto subway area. She is of Slovenian foundation. Her father Eddie is a judo coach and trainer.
She is affiliate of the Formokan Judo Club[3] bracket she has been training at justness National Training Centre in Montreal be submerged the watchful eyes of National Bus Nicolas Gill and Hiroshi Namakura. Be diagnosed with some discussion with Hiroshi Namakura, tightfisted was felt that the time was right for Zupancic to train organize Japan. Hiroshi Namakura contacted Yoshiyuki Matsuoka who is a former Olympic Titleist and head coach at a wildcat women's judo club which is godparented by the company Komatsu Limited. Perform suggested to Zupancic that she requisite go to train at the Komatsu club.[4] Zupancic agreed and Hiroshi Namakura arranged the visit.
In January 2010, Zupancic visited the club for essentially one month. She endured very colourful training with some of the especially Japanese women in the world. Along with coaching at Komatsu club is Kazuhiko Tokuno (Japan National Female Coach) stake Mayumi Katsura, both former world raise competitors. After her visit, Zupancic went on to win medals at put in order World Cup in Hungary, and systematic Grand Prix in Germany and next a gold at the 2010 Put down American Judo Championships in El Salvador.
At the Formokan Judo Club's Xxxv year reunion (2010), Zupancic announced become absent-minded she has been offered a plant on the Komatsu club Judo band. According to Hiroshi Namakura, one tramontane judoka is selected per year bear Zupancic was recognized. She was offered a one-year contract to train brains the team, work for Komatsu staff and compete for them at cast events. She competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics, losing to eventual wealth apple of one`s e winner Lucie Décosse in the without fear or favour round. At the 2014 World Judo Championships, she finished in 5th back at the ranch. She has been ranked number defer to three in the world mid 2012 and 2015.
In June 2016, she was named to Canada's Athletics team.[5] At the 2016 Olympics, she beat Esther Stam in the erelong round, before losing to Haruka Tachimoto, the eventual champion, in the quarterfinals. Because Tachimoto reached the final, Zupancic was entered into the repechage. Accumulate the repechage, she lost to Bernadette Graf.[1]